Bangladesh end speculation by naming Russell Domingo as head coach

After Mike Hesson lost the race for India's head coach to Ravi Shastri, there was growing speculation that he would acquire Bangladesh's coach position. However, things became even more confusing after Micky Arthur was a late entrant to the Bangladesh race after his contract with the PCB wasn't renewed following their World Cup campaign. But, the Bangladesh Cricket Board had a surprise in their arsenal as they announced the name of Russell Domingo for the role of head coach for a two-year period on Friday. 

Now, the South African, who has never played cricket at any level after failing to get into Eastern Province in his early 20s, will take over from Khaled Mahmud, who was appointed interim coach of the Bangladesh team for the recent series against Sri Lanka after the BCB decided against renewing the contract of Steve Rhodes following the 2019 World Cup.

"We have decided to pick Russell as he will be available. There were other candidates but we wanted someone who could be available for us and certainly, he has got the experience. We want a coach who can have a long term plan and he fits that because he is not interested to take leave. He has a wealth of experience and we have been very impressed with his passion and coaching philosophy. He has a clear idea of what is required to take the team forward," said BCB president Nazmul Hasan.

Domingo's international coaching started with the South Africa T20 side in 2012 before he replaced Gary Kirsten for the other two formats in 2013. He continued his role as Proteas head coach until 2017 but after 2017 Champions Trophy, Domingo had to relinquish his post in favour of Ottis Gibson. Domingo was interviewed by the BCB president Nazmul Hassan in person in Dhaka earlier this month and now, his first assignment will be Bangladesh's one-off Test against Afghanistan in Chattogram in September.

Speaking about his appointment, Domingo said: "It is a massive honour to be appointed the Head Coach of the Bangladesh National Cricket Team. I have followed Bangladesh's progress with keen interest and I am extremely excited to assist the team in reaching the goals that they are capable of. I look forward to continuing the ongoing development of current players whilst also looking towards the future and developing some new bright stars from within the talent pool of Bangladesh cricket."